Gu Huaiyu was different from any official they had ever met. It wouldn’t have mattered if he were simply a man who didn’t fear death, but…
The moment Gu Huaiyu spoke, it was as if the entire court had been put under a spell. Their hunched backs straightened, their lowered heads rose, and their shifty gazes became firm.
That was the truly terrifying part.
Yelü Chi tapped his knuckles against the sandalwood table. “All men fear death. The higher their position, the more they loathe to lose their lives. We have been able to beat Great Chen for a hundred years not because our blades are sharper or our horses faster, but because they chose to kneel first.”
The sunlight in the carriage fluctuated, casting deep shadows across his brow. “But if everyone in Great Chen learns to be like Gu Huaiyu…”
A chill ran through the men in the carriage. One Gu Huaiyu was already enough to leave them in disarray. If the whole court followed suit…
“No wonder,” Yelü Chi murmured.
The Vice-Envoy blinked. “Chief Envoy?”
“No wonder our mole in Great Chen has urged me time and time again to kill Gu Huaiyu as soon as possible.”
Yelü Chi’s fingers unconsciously traced his own lips. The faint warmth of Gu Huaiyu’s breath seemed to linger there—light, soft, and carrying a crisp, clean fragrance. His lips had been an vivid, striking red, soft as melting peach blossoms.
He didn’t look like someone who could be lethal.
Yelü Chi’s gaze darkened. He didn’t understand. His entire life had been defined by iron and blood—sharpening sabers, breeding warhorses, and slaughtering cities to instill fear. Chancellor Gu was outside his understanding: a man of broken bones and half-dead health who could make a thousand men willing to die for him with just a few words.
It defied all logic.
If he could dissect that power, if he could understand the secret behind it…
Before leaving Great Chen, he had to solve the mystery of Gu Huaiyu.
On the other side of the city, Gu Huaiyu’s carriage moved slowly through the streets.
Pei Jingyi tossed the reins to an Iron Eagle Guard and ducked into the carriage with practiced ease.
Gu Huaiyu was leaning comfortably against a foot-stove, looking through notes sent by “The Hearing.” He didn’t even bother to look up at the sound of the intrusion. “Does the Chancellor’s carriage look like a place you can just enter whenever you please?”
Pei Jingyi dropped to one knee on the padded floor. “I’m here to serve the Chancellor.”
Without waiting for an answer, he grasped Gu Huaiyu’s ankle and deftly unlaced his cloud-patterned official boots.
The soles of the boots were damp with melting slush, and the icy water had soaked through the white silk socks. Gu’s feet were freezing to the touch.
Pei Jingyi frowned, quickly removing both boots and gathering the feet into his large palms.
Those feet were so white they were almost translucent, with slender bones and elegant arches. The tips of the toes were flushed red from the cold, looking like fallen plum petals in the snow.
“Your feet are like ice…”
Pei Jingyi’s calloused fingertips rubbed against the silky skin, his broad palms completely enveloping the frozen soles. “Why didn’t you call me in sooner to serve you?”
The friction from Pei’s callouses made Gu Huaiyu feel itchy and numb. He wanted to kick the man away, but he craved the warmth, so he endured it. “I was busy today. I didn’t notice.”
Pei Jingyi’s palms were like branding irons, the heat seeping through the skin and deep into the bone. His thumbs massaged the pressure points on the soles with surprisingly professional technique.
“In the hall today…” Pei Jingyi spoke suddenly, his eyes glowing as he stared at Gu Huaiyu. “How did you know that Eastern Liao would lose to us in the future?”
Pei had his own theories. In Bingzhou, he had seen too many soldiers with fear in their eyes before the battle even began—a bone-deep terror more lethal than any wolf-tooth arrow. As long as the myth of the “Invincible Eastern Liao Cavalry” existed, the soldiers of Great Chen would remain hesitant, shrinking back and waiting for death.
But once that myth was shattered—once they saw with their own eyes that the men of Eastern Liao could bleed, flee, and be cut down—Great Chen would find its edge.
He had never told anyone this theory.
Gu Huaiyu narrowed his eyes and said lazily, “Because I am the one devising the strategies. I can determine victory from a thousand miles away.”
Before he could finish, a thumb pressed firmly into the center of his foot. Gu Huaiyu let out a sharp, involuntary gasp and shot a cold look at the general.
Pei Jingyi maintained an expression of total righteousness. “I’m stimulating your circulation.”
His touch softened, however, stroking the skin as if it were the finest silk. He looked up at Gu Huaiyu. “The world is vast, yet the only one who shares my heart is you, Chancellor.”
Gu Huaiyu gave a light, disdainful scoff, though he looked somewhat satisfied by the flattery. You speak so sweetly now, but when I have to drink your blood in the future, don’t you dare turn on me.
Pei Jingyi’s eyes flickered as his thumb drifted toward Gu’s ankle. “I noticed that His Majesty seems… excessively close to you.”
Gu Huaiyu arched a brow. “You think so too?”
“Indeed,” Pei Jingyi said seriously.
Hugging, clinging, acting like a spoiled child… was that how a sovereign and a subject were supposed to behave?
Gu Huaiyu nodded thoughtfully. He really hadn’t misjudged that little brat. Even Pei Jingyi could see that Yuan Zhuo was acting strange. The Emperor acted so obedient in front of him, but he was probably plotting to seize power behind his back.
“Perhaps…” Pei Jingyi said, seizing the opportunity. “We should take this chance to arrange a marriage for His Majesty. He could wed next year.”
Gu Huaiyu’s gaze turned instantly cold.
If Yuan Zhuo married, the Pure Stream faction would immediately pressure him to take over the government, thereby weakening the Chancellor’s power. Was Pei Jingyi trying to play both sides to get rid of him?
Gu Huaiyu suddenly lashed out, his pale foot slamming directly into Pei Jingyi’s face.
Thud!
Pei Jingyi went along with the force, falling back onto the carriage floor. The foot he had just been warming in his hands was now pressed firmly against his cheek. The cool sole against his burning skin sent a rush of heat straight through his blood.
Gu Huaiyu leaned back against the stove, looking down at him with disdain. He applied a slight pressure, grinding his toes against Pei’s cheekbone. “Pei Du, I’m warning you. Don’t play those games with me.”
Suddenly, Pei Jingyi rolled over, pulling the white foot so that the sole pressed directly over his face. He nuzzled his nose against the cool arch, a satisfied groan vibrating in his throat.
The scent was intoxicating, and the skin was soft enough to kill. Gu wasn’t even using enough force to hurt.
“This subordinate knows his mistake,” Pei Jingyi rasped, his voice thick and strained. Between words, he took the chance to press a kiss to the flushed toes. “Chancellor, your feet are getting cold again.”
Pei Jingyi sure is enjoying himself 😭